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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
A Sun Pillar in Red and Violet
Explanation: Sometimes the unknown is beautiful. In 2000 February near Lake Tahoe, Nevada , two amateur photographers noticed an unusual red column of light rise mysteriously from a setting sun . During the next few minutes, they were able to capture the pillar and a photogenic sunset on film. Pictured above, the red column is seen above a serene Lake Tahoe and snow-capped mountains across from Lake Tahoe-Nevada State Park . The mysterious column, they learned later, is a Sun Pillar , a phenomenon where sunlight reflects off of distant falling ice crystals .
| Date | November 7, 2001 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit & Copyright: Jim Kirkpatrick & Brigitte Heiter-Kirkpatrick |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |